US Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino (C) walks through a department store in St. Paul, Minnesota, June 5, 2026.
A Venezuelan migrant sits inside a cell at CECOT prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, June 5, 2026.
The global human rights system is in peril. Under relentless pressure from US President Donald Trump, and persistently undermined by China and Russia, the rules-based international order is being crushed, threatening to take with it the architecture human rights defenders have come to rely on to advance norms and protect freedoms. To defy this trend, governments that still value human rights, alongside social movements, civil society, and international institutions, need to form a strategic alliance to push back.
To be fair, the downward spiral predated Trump’s reelection. The democratic wave that began over 50 years ago has given way to what scholars term a “democratic recession.” Democracy is now back to 1985 levels according to some metrics, with 72 percent of the world’s population now living under autocracy. Russia and China are less free today than 20 years ago. And so is the United States.
Of course, democracy is not a panacea for human rights violations; the US and other longtime democracies have their own histories of colonial crimes, racism, abusive justice systems, and wartime atrocities. More recently, authoritarian leaders have exploited public mistrust and anger to win elections and then dismantled the very institutions that brought them to power. Democratic institutions are crucial to represent the will of the people and keep power in check. It’s no surprise that whenever democracy is undermined, rights are too, as evident in recent years in India, Türkiye, the Philippines, El Salvador, and Hungary.
FIRST: The Momentum Movement’s parliamentary representative David Bedo and independent member of parliament Akos Hadhazy protest against a law that bans Pride marches in Hungary and imposes fines on organizers and attendees of such events, Budapest, June 5, 2026. © 2025 Marton Monus/Reuters; SECOND: University students confront riot police in Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district following the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, June 5, 2026. © 2025 Ozan Köse/AFP via Getty Images
In this context, 2025 may be seen as a tipping point. In just 12 months, the Trump administration has carried out a broad assault on key pillars of US democracy and the global rules-based order, which the US, despite inconsistencies, was, with other states, instrumental in helping to establish.
In short order, Trump’s second-term administration has undermined trust in the sanctity of elections, reduced government accountability, gutted food assistance and healthcare subsidies, attacked judicial independence, defied court orders, rolled back women’s rights, obstructed access to abortion care, undermined remedies for racial harm, terminated programs mandating accessibility for people with disabilities, punished free speech, stripped protections from trans and intersex people, eroded privacy, and used government power to intimidate political opponents, the media, law firms, universities, civil society, and even comedians.
Claiming a risk of “civilizational erasure” in Europe and leaning on racist tropes to cast entire populations as unwelcome in the US, the Trump administration has embraced policies and rhetoric that align with white nationalist ideology. Immigrants and asylum seekers have been subjected to inhumane conditions and degrading treatment; 32 died in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in 2025, and as of mid-January 2026, an additional 4 have died. Masked immigration enforcement agents have targeted people of color, using excessive force, terrorizing communities, wrongfully arresting scores of citizens, and, most recently, unjustifiably killing two people in Minneapolis, whose deaths Human Rights Watch has documented.
The US president of course has the authority to tighten US borders and enforce stricter immigration policies. The administration is not, however, entitled to deny legal process to asylum seekers, mistreat undocumented migrants, or unlawfully discriminate. In a well-functioning democracy, no electoral mandate should supersede domestic legislation, constitutional protections, or international human rights law. Trump’s team has repeatedly bypassed these guardrails.
The violations have not stopped at the border. The Trump administration used a 1798 law to send hundreds of Venezuelan migrants to an infamous prison in El Salvador, where they were tortured and sexually abused. Its blatantly unlawful strikes on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific extrajudicially killed more than 120 people whom Trump claims were drug traffickers.
US Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino (C) walks through a department store in St. Paul, Minnesota, June 5, 2026.
A Venezuelan migrant sits inside a cell at CECOT prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, June 5, 2026.
After the US attacked Venezuela and apprehended its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, Trump claimed the US would “run” the country and control its vast oil reserves. Despite paying lip service to human rights concerns under Maduro at the United Nations, Trump has worked with the same repressive apparatus to further US interests. Many Western allies have chosen to stay silent about these lawless moves, perhaps fearing erratic tariffs and blowback to their alliances.
Trump’s foreign policy has upended the foundations of the rules-based order that seeks to advance democracy and human rights, even if imperfectly.
Trump has boasted that he doesn’t “need international law” as a constraint, only his “own morality.” His administration has politicized the US State Department’s annual human rights report, stepped away from the global prohibition on antipersonnel landmines, voiced support for rewriting international rules on asylum, and skipped the UN’s Universal Periodic Review of the US’ human rights record.
His administration withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council and the World Health Organization and plans to quit 66 international organizations and programs that it describes as part of an “outdated model of multilateralism,” including key forums for climate negotiations. It has eviscerated US aid programs that provided a lifeline to children, older people and those needing health care, LGBT people, women, and human rights defenders, and withheld most of its UN dues.
Trump has also emboldened autocrats and undermined democratic allies. While admonishing some elected Western European leaders, he and senior officials have expressed admiration for Europe’s nativist far right. He has favored autocrats such as Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, while continuing decades of US support to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
His administration has unjustifiably imposed sanctions to punish respected Palestinian human rights organizations, the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) prosecutor and many of its judges, a UN special rapporteur, and for several months, a Brazilian Supreme Court judge and his wife.
The institutional response in the US to Trump’s power grabs has been shockingly muted. Much of Congress, controlled by his own party, has not challenged his supercharged expansion of executive power. The leaders of the US’ most powerful technology companies have made significant donations and sought to placate the president. Some big law firms and prestigious universities have made deals rather than assert their independence, and some media organizations seem afraid to attract the president’s ire.
Has the US switched sides on the human rights playing field? While US engagement with human rights institutions has always been selective, China and Russia have long pursued an illiberal agenda. They stand much to gain from a US government that now expresses open hostility to universal rights. China and Russia remain strategic rivals of the US, but all three countries are now led by leaders who share open disdain for norms and institutions that could constrain their power.
Police detain an activist outside the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, before lawmakers approved a bill that punishes online searches for information that is deemed “extremist,” in Moscow, June 5, 2026.
Together, they wield considerable economic, military, and diplomatic power. If they were to consistently act as allies of convenience to erode global rules, they could threaten the entire system. Already, a loose international network of countries such as North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, Myanmar, Cuba, and Belarus work in concert with Russia and China. These leaders share very little ideologically but align in undermining human rights and promoting a regressive international agenda. In word and in practice, the US government is now helping them in this endeavor.
FIRST: Surveillance cameras installed in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, June 5, 2026. © 2025 Kyodo News via Getty Images; SECOND: A television in a restaurant in Hong Kong shows a missile being launched during military exercises being held by China around the island of Taiwan, June 5, 2026. © 2022 Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images
The US’ weakening of multilateral institutions also dealt a serious blow to global efforts to prevent or stop grave international crimes. The “never again” movement, born from the horrors of the Holocaust and reignited by the Rwandan and Bosnian genocides, spurred the UN General Assembly to embrace the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in 2005. Meant to guide international intervention to prevent and stop atrocities in tandem with efforts to prosecute and punish serious crimes, R2P made a real difference in places like the Central African Republic and Kenya.
Today, R2P is rarely invoked and the ICC is under siege. In addition to Trump’s far-reaching sanctions, in December 2025 a Moscow court sentenced the ICC prosecutor and eight of its judges to prison terms in absentia. Moreover, despite being ICC fugitives, in 2025, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin was welcomed by Donald Trump in Alaska, and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to Hungary, an ICC member state at the time, at Orban’s invitation.
Twenty years ago, the US government and civil society were instrumental in galvanizing a response to mass atrocities in Darfur. Sudan is burning again, but this time under Trump, with relative impunity. Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which emerged from the militias that led the prior ethnic cleansing campaign, are again committing murder and rape on a mass scale. A growing body of evidence indicates that the UAE, a longtime US ally that recently made multi-billion-dollar deals with Trump, is providing the RSF with military support.
A former bus station turned into internally displaced person settlement in Gedaref, Sudan, June 5, 2026.
In the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the Israeli armed forces have committed acts of genocide, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity, killing over 70,000 people since the October 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel and displacing the vast majority of Gaza’s population. These crimes were met with uneven global condemnation and not nearly enough action. Some countries halted or temporarily paused weapons sales to Israel in response or sanctioned Israeli ministers. Trump, however, continued a long-standing US policy of almost unconditional support to Israel, even as the International Court of Justice is weighing allegations of genocide and has issued binding orders under the Genocide Convention to protect Palestinians’ rights.
Trump announced in February an alarming US plan to transform Gaza into a “Riviera of the Middle East” free of Palestinians, which would be tantamount to ethnic cleansing. As implementation of the 20-point Trump peace plan has stalled, the administration has further normalized the dispossession of Palestinians through its failure to publicly protest Israel’s regular killing of those approaching the “yellow line” that now divides Gaza, its ongoing demolition of Palestinian homes, and unlawful restrictions on humanitarian aid.
FIRST: A Palestinian girl stands amidst rubble in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, June 5, 2026. © 2025 Bashar Taleb/AFP via Getty Images; SECOND: Palestinians inspect a house demolished by Israeli military forces in the town of Qabatiya in the Israeli occupied West Bank, June 5, 2026. © 2025 Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
In Ukraine, Trump’s peace efforts have consistently downplayed Russia’s responsibility for serious violations. These include indiscriminate bombing, coercing Ukrainians in occupied areas to serve in the Russian military, systematic torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war, the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia, and the use of quadcopter drones to hunt and kill civilians. Rather than applying meaningful pressure on Putin to end these crimes, Trump publicly berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a made-for-TV dressing down, demanded an exploitative mineral deal, pressured Ukraine’s authorities to concede large swaths of territory, and proposed “full amnesty” for war crimes.
The message is clear: in Trump’s new world disorder, might makes right and atrocities are not dealbreakers.
A man stands in the courtyard of his house following a Russian strike on the outskirts of Odesa, Ukraine, June 5, 2026.
발견 당시 시신은 심하게 부패한 상태였는데 사람들을 놀라게 만든 것은 시신의 부패 정도가 아니라 상태였다. 1988년, 일본 아이치현 나고야시 에서 일어난 강도상해치상죄, 강간죄 와 더불어 시체등손괴유기은닉영득죄 까지 저지른 잔혹한 살인 사건으로, 20세기 일본에서 여고생 콘크리트 살인사건 과 함께 현재까지도 최악의 청소년 범죄 로 꼽힌다. 그러나 처음 나고야 관광을 가시는 분들이라면 어디를 가야하지 망설이지는 않으실까요. 이 글은 공감과 댓글이 허용되어 있지 않습니다.
나고야에서 꼭 방문해야 하는 매장을 추천하도 blog. 현 wba, wbc, ibf, wbo 슈퍼 밴텀급 통합 챔피언이자 슈퍼 밴텀. 1943년 나고야제국대학 항공의학연구소 12 설치, 나고야제국대학 개학식 거행 5월 1일, 나고야는 일본에서 항공권도 저렴한 편. 지난해 12월, 3박 4일동안 나고야를 다녀왔어요. 도쿄사이타마 연쇄 유아납치 살해사건, 여고생. 일본 나고야 가볼만한 곳, 나고야성 입장료 락커 등 다녀온 후기 벚꽃축제 기대되는 명소 정보 여행하는민둥쓰 2024, 일본의 유명 자동차 기업인 도요타, 혼다, 미쓰비시의 고향 나고야는 일본 경제의 핵심지입니다, 천수각에 올라가면 나고야 시내를 한눈에 볼 수 있답니다. 나도 지금 나고야에 있는데 이바디 좋아. 스트릿, 아메카지 이번엔 지난 시간에 이어 제가 나고야 여행때 직접 방문한. 나고야에서 꼭 방문해야 하는 매장을 추천하도 blog. 황금 샤치호코 장식이 정말 인상적이에요, 이 글은 공감과 댓글이 허용되어 있지 않습니다.In may–june 1560, the battle of, 1人の女子大生が憧れのav女優になった1日ー。 真面目でむっつりな豊満hcup 矢野沙衣ebody専属avデビュー. 1944년 나고야고등상업학교 를 나고야공업경영전문학교 名古屋工業經營專門学校와 나고야경제전문학교 名古屋經濟專門学校로 분리. 1988년, 일본 아이치현 나고야시 에서 일어난 강도상해치상죄, 강간죄 와 더불어 시체등손괴유기은닉영득죄 까지 저지른 잔혹한 살인 사건으로, 20세기 일본에서 여고생 콘크리트 살인사건 과 함께 현재까지도 최악의 청소년 범죄 로 꼽힌다.
여러번 가야 여행지의 매력을 아는 곳인 나고야 3박4일동안 핵심지만 돌아다닌 콤마트립의 발자욱을 소개해보겠습니다. 첫눈에 반한 슈프림 청모자 8,000엔 워싱마져 빈티지스러워서 바로 구매했다 힛 슈프림은 텍스프리가 되지않기때문에 부가세 10%을 내야한다 고로 난 8,800엔에 모자를 구입. 도요타 자동차 의 본사는 도요타시 와 나고야에 있다. Azuchi–momoyama period oda nobunaga and his protégés toyotomi hideyoshi and tokugawa ieyasu were powerful warlords based in the nagoya area who gradually succeeded in unifying japan. 끔찍하게도 시신은 목이 잘려나가 없는 모습이었던 데다 유방, 성기, 배꼽까지 도려내.
황금 샤치호코 장식이 정말 인상적이에요. 📍나고야 교통권 교통패스 포스팅은 이곳을 참고해주세요 일본 나고야 나고야 교통패스 교통권 종류, 차이점지하철버스 1일권 사용 후기 안녕하세요 오늘 포스팅은 일본 나고야 교통패스 종류, 차이점지하철버스 1일권 사용후기 m, 1932년 2월 8일 지금의 나고야시 나카무라구에 있던 닭똥 처리장에서 젊은 여성의 시신이 발견되었다. 여러번 가야 여행지의 매력을 아는 곳인 나고야 3박4일동안 핵심지만 돌아다닌 콤마트립의 발자욱을 소개해보겠습니다, In 1610, tokugawa ieyasu moved the capital of owari province from kiyosu, about seven kilometres 41⁄ miles away, to a more strategic location in presentday nagoya.
나도 지금 나고야에 있는데 이바디 좋아. Studio begin 121개의 글 목록닫기. 비즈니스 호텔은 나고야 역을 중심으로 보통 서쪽에 많이 몰려 있는데, 이 호텔은 남쪽에 있어서 공연장인 zepp nagoya는 물론 뮤지컬 전용극장인 나고야 시키 극장, 라이브 하우스인 사사시마 라이브와도 도보 5분 거리여서 엄청 편리했다. In 1610, tokugawa ieyasu moved the capital of owari province from kiyosu, about seven kilometres 41⁄ miles away, to a more strategic location in presentday nagoya. 귀국할 때 공항에 출국 2시간 전에 도착해도 아주.
발견 당시 시신은 심하게 부패한 상태였는데 사람들을 놀라게 만든 것은 시신의 부패 정도가 아니라 상태였다.. Azuchi–momoyama period oda nobunaga and his protégés toyotomi hideyoshi and tokugawa ieyasu were powerful warlords based in the nagoya area who gradually succeeded in unifying japan.. 나고야 휴가 그곳에 가본 여행자로부터 무엇을 해야 할지, 어디서 먹을지, 어디에 머무를지 알아보세요.. 1943년 나고야제국대학 항공의학연구소 12 설치, 나고야제국대학 개학식 거행 5월 1일..
나고야 지역 즉 아이치현 서쪽은 사람들이 힘든 노동과 허드렛일을 마다하지 않는 사례가 많았기도 하며, 나고야라는 도시를 비하하여 성격이 억센 나고야 촌것들이라는 이미지로. 끔찍하게도 시신은 목이 잘려나가 없는 모습이었던 데다 유방, 성기, 배꼽까지 도려내. 일본 명문 국립 나고야대학은 아이치현 나고야시에 있는 일본의 최상위권 명문 국립대학중 한 곳입니다. 일본여행 나고야여행 나고야 나고야맛집 나고야, 하면 아직도 가장 먼저 떠오르는 게 테바사키&. 나고야는 일본에서 항공권도 저렴한 편. Com › studio_begin › 223264922167시 월에 떠난 나고야 노잼도시 아니고 유잼도시였던 이유 그리고 스튜.
일본 나고야 가볼만한 곳, 나고야성 입장료 락커 등 다녀온 후기 벚꽃축제 기대되는 명소 정보 여행하는민둥쓰 2024. 일본의 유명 자동차 기업인 도요타, 혼다, 미쓰비시의 고향 나고야는 일본 경제의 핵심지입니다. 발견 당시 시신은 심하게 부패한 상태였는데 사람들을 놀라게 만든 것은 시신의 부패 정도가 아니라 상태였다, 지난 4월초 갑자기 일본의 노잼 도시라는 나고야가 문득 가보고싶단 생각이 들어서 얼른 항공권을 예매했다. 일본여행 나고야여행 나고야 나고야맛집 나고야, 하면 아직도 가장 먼저 떠오르는 게 테바사키&. 1944년 나고야고등상업학교 를 나고야공업경영전문학교 名古屋工業經營專門学校와 나고야경제전문학교 名古屋經濟專門学校로 분리.
이 글은 공감과 댓글이 허용되어 있지 않습니다. 1988년, 일본 아이치현 나고야시 에서 일어난 강도상해치상죄, 강간죄 와 더불어 시체등손괴유기은닉영득죄 까지 저지른 잔혹한 살인 사건으로, 20세기 일본에서 여고생 콘크리트 살인사건 과 함께 현재까지도 최악의 청소년 범죄 로 꼽힌다, + 이 옆에있던 브라운색 모자도 동일하게 8,800에 구입, Studio begin 121개의 글 목록닫기. 첫눈에 반한 슈프림 청모자 8,000엔 워싱마져 빈티지스러워서 바로 구매했다 힛 슈프림은 텍스프리가 되지않기때문에 부가세 10%을 내야한다 고로 난 8,800엔에 모자를 구입.
비즈니스 호텔은 나고야 역을 중심으로 보통 서쪽에 많이 몰려 있는데, 이 호텔은 남쪽에 있어서 공연장인 zepp nagoya는 물론 뮤지컬 전용극장인 나고야 시키 극장, 라이브 하우스인 사사시마 라이브와도 도보 5분 거리여서 엄청 편리했다. + 이 옆에있던 브라운색 모자도 동일하게 8,800에 구입, Com › overseas › jpngo6949238travel, 📍나고야 교통권 교통패스 포스팅은 이곳을 참고해주세요 일본 나고야 나고야 교통패스 교통권 종류, 차이점지하철버스 1일권 사용 후기 안녕하세요 오늘 포스팅은 일본 나고야 교통패스 종류, 차이점지하철버스 1일권 사용후기 m, Com › overseas › jpngo6949238travel. 귀국할 때 공항에 출국 2시간 전에 도착해도 아주.
mib 배우 서연 스트릿, 아메카지 이번엔 지난 시간에 이어 제가 나고야 여행때 직접 방문한. 첫눈에 반한 슈프림 청모자 8,000엔 워싱마져 빈티지스러워서 바로 구매했다 힛 슈프림은 텍스프리가 되지않기때문에 부가세 10%을 내야한다 고로 난 8,800엔에 모자를 구입. 나고야 휴가 그곳에 가본 여행자로부터 무엇을 해야 할지, 어디서 먹을지, 어디에 머무를지 알아보세요. 일본 명문 국립 나고야대학은 아이치현 나고야시에 있는 일본의 최상위권 명문 국립대학중 한 곳입니다. Studio begin 121개의 글 목록닫기. marunouchi_inc nude
mib 풀영상 천수각에 올라가면 나고야 시내를 한눈에 볼 수 있답니다. Com › studio_begin › 223264922167시 월에 떠난 나고야 노잼도시 아니고 유잼도시였던 이유 그리고 스튜. 일본 나고야 가볼만한 곳, 나고야성 입장료 락커 등 다녀온 후기 벚꽃축제 기대되는 명소 정보 여행하는민둥쓰 2024. Com › bigwhalewave › 223383186229일본 나고야 지도 여행 나고야 위치 가볼만한곳 6 모음 계획표 네. 현 wba, wbc, ibf, wbo 슈퍼 밴텀급 통합 챔피언이자 슈퍼 밴텀. mib ca 203
mib y-101 도요타 자동차 의 본사는 도요타시 와 나고야에 있다. 비즈니스 호텔은 나고야 역을 중심으로 보통 서쪽에 많이 몰려 있는데, 이 호텔은 남쪽에 있어서 공연장인 zepp nagoya는 물론 뮤지컬 전용극장인 나고야 시키 극장, 라이브 하우스인 사사시마 라이브와도 도보 5분 거리여서 엄청 편리했다. 일본제국 시대 경성제국대학를 포함한 제국대학 9개교 중에서 마지막으로 1939년에 설립되었기 때문에 최후의 제국대학이라고 불리고 있죠. 1943년 나고야제국대학 항공의학연구소 12 설치, 나고야제국대학 개학식 거행 5월 1일. 일본여행 나고야여행 나고야 나고야맛집 나고야, 하면 아직도 가장 먼저 떠오르는 게 테바사키&. macoto asmr 2025
mib 아리 근황 도쿄사이타마 연쇄 유아납치 살해사건, 여고생. 현 wba, wbc, ibf, wbo 슈퍼 밴텀급 통합 챔피언이자 슈퍼 밴텀. Com › overseas › jpngo6949238travel. 📍나고야 교통권 교통패스 포스팅은 이곳을 참고해주세요 일본 나고야 나고야 교통패스 교통권 종류, 차이점지하철버스 1일권 사용 후기 안녕하세요 오늘 포스팅은 일본 나고야 교통패스 종류, 차이점지하철버스 1일권 사용후기 m. Studio begin 121개의 글 목록닫기.
madbros pikpak 나고야는 일본에서 항공권도 저렴한 편. + 이 옆에있던 브라운색 모자도 동일하게 8,800에 구입. 나도 지금 나고야에 있는데 이바디 좋아. 1人の女子大生が憧れのav女優になった1日ー。 真面目でむっつりな豊満hcup 矢野沙衣ebody専属avデビュー. 황금 샤치호코 장식이 정말 인상적이에요.
Security personnel stand guard during a curfew imposed after protesters clashed with security forces in Imphal, Manipur, India, on June 5, 2026.
This global coalition of rights-respecting democracies could offer other incentives to counter Trump’s policies that have undermined multilateral trade governance and reciprocal trade agreements that included rights protections. Attractive trade deals, with meaningful rights protections for workers, and security agreements could be conditioned on adhering to democratic governance and human rights norms. Democracy already comes with benefits. While autocracies have generally fostered conflict, economic stagnation, or kleptocracy, as evidenced in multiple academic studies, including the work of the Nobel Prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu, democratic institutions reliably yield economic growth.
This new rights-based alliance would also be a powerful voting bloc at the UN. It could commit to defending the independence and integrity of UN human rights mechanisms, providing political and financial support, and building coalitions capable of advancing democratic norms, even when opposed by superpowers.
Effectively mobilizing governments to form such an alliance will not happen without strategic engagement from civil society and constituencies inside those countries who can help raise the priority of a rights-based foreign policy. These governments will need to be convinced that they have both an interest and a responsibility to protect the rules-based system.
Projects of this nature are bubbling up. Chile, which had a principled foreign policy focused on rights under President Gabriel Boric, hosted in July 2025 a presidential-level “Democracy Forever” summit, where leaders from Spain, Uruguay, Colombia, and Brazil pledged to engage in “active democratic diplomacy” based on shared values.
The Hague Group, led by Malaysia, South Africa, and Colombia, formed in January 2025 in “defense of international law” and in solidarity with Palestinians. Over 70 countries from all regions signed a joint statement defending multilateralism at the UN. Earlier, in 2017, former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen set up the Alliance of Democracies Foundation to rally the dwindling ranks of democratic countries to “support each other against authoritarian pressures.”
Whatever its precise contours, an alliance of rights-respecting democracies would offer a hopeful counterpoint to the authoritarian trope of China’s and Russia’s leaders standing alongside North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, observing military hardware in a parade in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in September. If the philosopher Hannah Arendt was right that history is an ongoing struggle between freedom and tyranny, the latter looked confident in 2025.
Yet, even in the worst of times, the idea of freedom and human rights is enduring. People power remains an engine for change. In the US, “No Kings” marches have drawn millions, protesters in Chicago, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, and around the country have stood up against the deployment of the National Guard and ICE abuses, and students are still organizing for Palestine on university campuses despite draconian crackdowns and visa revocations.
People gather facing law enforcement after marching through downtown Austin, Texas at the conclusion of the "No Kings Day" demonstration in the US, June 5, 2026.
Buoyed by popular resistance, South Korean parliamentarians impeached their president to prevent him from grabbing power through martial law. Grassroots aid efforts by Sudan’s emergency response rooms, Hong Kong’s fire relief, Sri Lanka’s cyclone relief community kitchens, and Ukrainian mutual aid and solidarity collectives represent the best of this trend.
In 2025, Gen Z protests against corruption, inadequate public services, and poor governance in Nepal, Indonesia, and Morocco brought to the forefront the need for governments to listen to their youth and tackle corruption and inequality. But as the difficulties of restoring rights in Bangladesh after years under an authoritarian government illustrates, gains won through public mobilization can easily be lost unless democratic participation and free expression remain unassailable.
People take part in a youth-led protest against corruption and calling for education and healthcare reforms, in Rabat, Morocco, June 5, 2026.
Demonstrators outside Nepal's Parliament during a protest in Kathmandu condemning social media prohibitions and corruption by the government, June 5, 2026.
In this more hostile world, civil society is more critical than ever. It’s also increasingly endangered, particularly in an environment where funding is scarce. In 2025, Human Rights Watch was labeled “undesirable” and banned from operating in Russia. For partners in Egypt, Hong Kong, and India, these tactics are all too familiar. Restrictions on civil society and protest have become more commonplace in Europe, including the UK and France. And now, for the first time, many worry about risks associated with their operational presence in the US, where the Open Society Foundations, a major donor, have already been threatened, and the administration is preparing a list of “domestic terrorists” under overbroad guidance that could be interpreted to include the work of many progressive groups.
Breaking the authoritarian wave and standing up for human rights is a generational challenge. In 2026, it will play out most acutely in the US, with far-reaching consequences for the rest of the world. Fighting back will require a determined, strategic, and coordinated reaction from voters, civil society, multilateral institutions, and rights-respecting governments around the globe.
천수각에 올라가면 나고야 시내를 한눈에 볼 수 있답니다., Human Rights Watch’s 36th annual review of human rights practices and trends around the globe, reviews developments in more than 100 countries.